Bento: Bacon, Pea Shoots, Egg, Gyoza & Pasta
Due to a lack of creativity, I named this recipe “Bento: Bacon, Pea Shoots, Egg, Gyoza & Pasta”. I used whatever ingredients I have in the kitchen for this bento because I was too lazy to go out for grocery shopping it’s a great way to clear the fridge :P Most of the ingredients used were frozen – basically all the veggies other than a tray of fresh pea shoots, bacon, ham and gyoza.
See Also:
This lunch box is made up of:
- (A) Bacon pea shoots wraps
- (B) Italian garden pasta
- (C) Ham tamagoyaki (egg roll)
- (D) Supermarket pan-fried gyoza
- (E) sauce for the bacon wrap, also a dip for the egg roll & gyoza.
Bacon Pea Shoots Wraps
To make them, wrap a bunch of pea shoots stems with a slice of streaky bacon. Sear the bacon wraps in a pan until lightly cooked all-around, then simmer the wraps in a savoury sauce for a few minutes. When done, run the sauce through a sieve so that it is particle-free. I separate the bacon wraps and sauce so that it keeps better in a lunchbox. The sauce can also double up as a dip for the tamagoyaki & gyoza.
Note: I’m only making four bacon wraps because that’s all the bacon I had in the freezer. On a day where I am not lazy to go out for grocery shopping, I’ll make at least double the amount of bacon wraps. I’ll make a more detailed photo recipe for these bacon wraps soon.
Italian Garden Pasta
This pasta is made using my Italian garden pasta recipe. The veggies I used this time were frozen vegetables (carrot, pea, corn & bell pepper). This pasta can be made 2 days in advance; in fact this was the leftovers from the previous day. The pasta sauce is a tangy Italian vinaigrette dressing. I like this pasta in a bento as it keeps relatively well for a few hours without refrigerating. But it is best to keep it in the fridge, if it is available in your office pantry.
Ham Tamgoyaki
I have been making tamagoyaki (Japanese egg roll) frequently recently. You can check out the step-by-step photos on how to fold the egg roll in my recent pea shoots tamagoyaki recipe.
Supermarket Gyoza
Supermarket gyoza is a huge convenience as they can be cooked from frozen without thawing. Leftovers also keep well in the fridge for at least 3 days. The gyoza can be eaten cold or warmed. It’s no wonder that the gyoza are so popular in Japanese bento.
Pack everything into the lunch box with a sauce bottle at the side. I’m using a double layer 15x7cm lunch box.
Bento: Bacon, Pea Shoots, Egg, Gyoza & Pasta Recipe
I’m using a double layer 15×7 cm lunch box with a 30ml sauce bottle. This lunch box keeps at room temperature for about 4 hours without needing to heat up. It can also be chilled in the fridge and warmed in the microwave before eating.
Ingredients:
Bacon Wrapped Pea Shoots
- 80g pea shoots
- 8 slices streaky bacon
(A) Sauce
- 100 ml water
- 1/8 tsp dashi powder
- 1 tsp mirin
- 1/2 tsp light soy sauce
- 10g brown sugar
Italian Garden Pasta
- 150g macaroni
- 1/2 cup frozen assorted veg (carrot, corn, pea)
- half bell pepper cut to small wedges
- a generous handful shredded carrot
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese to taste; optional
- 2 tbsp pasta cooking water (or chicken stock) add more if needed
(B) Sauce
- 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil (evoo)
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar) to taste; build up 1 tsp at a time if needed
- 3/4 tsp zero-calorie pancake syrup (or honey/maple syrup/fine sugar) to taste
- 1 tsp dried Italian seasoning
- 1/8 tsp garlic salt to taste
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
Ham Tamagoyaki
- 2 eggs
- 1/8 tsp dashi powder
- 2 tbsp chicken stock
- 1 tbsp mirin
- 1/2 slice picnic ham diced
- oil for greasing the pan
You also need
- non-stick tamagoyaki pan (18 by 13 cm/7.25 by 5.10 in)
- pastry brush for greasing the pan
(4) Supermarket Gyoza
- 12 frozen supermarket gyoza (Japanese dumplings) do not defrost
- 1/2 tbsp + 1 tsp sesame oil divided
Directions:
- Make bacon wrapped pea shoots. Divide pea shoots into 8 equal bundles. Wrap each bundle of pea shoot stems with one slice of streaky bacon, making 8 bacon wraps in total. Grease a small frying pan and sear the bacon surface until slightly browned. Pour sauce (A) onto the pan, simmer covered until the sauce is half reduced and thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Run the sauce through a sieve and divide it into two mini (30ml) salad sauce bottles.
- Make garden pasta. Boil macaroni in a pot of salted water. Three minutes before the macaroni is cooked, add the frozen veg. Drain the pasta and veggies through a colander and add them to a large salad bowl. Add bell pepper, carrot, parmesan cheese, pasta cooking water and sauce (B). Toss to coat evenly & season to taste.
- Make ham tamagoyaki. Whisk egg, dashi powder, chicken stock and mirin in a large measuring cup. Add picnic ham to the egg mixture. Grease tamagoyaki pan with oil. Stir the egg mixture one more time, then pour 1/3 of the mixture to cover the pan evenly. When the egg is semi-set, start rolling it from one end to the other using chopsticks or a spatula. Push the first layer of rolled egg back to the starting point and re-grease the exposed part of the pan. Repeat this step for another two more times, until all the egg is used up. When cooled, cut the tamagoyaki into 8 equal pieces.
- Pan fry gyoza. Grease frying pan with 1/2 tbsp sesame oil. Arrange gyoza on their flat bottom and cook in the oil without touching them, until the bottom skin is browned and crisp. Add enough water to cover the gyoza at least 1.5 cm. Cover with lid and steam for 3-5 minutes, or until almost all the water is evaporated. Drizzle the remaining sesame oil around the pan, and pan fry the other surfaces of the gyoza briefly until lightly seared throughout. Set aside the pan fried gyoza to cool on a wire rack.
- Assemble lunch box. Divide the food among two lunch boxes. Pack each lunch box with a bottled sauce prepared from step 1. This lunch box keeps well at room temperature for half a day. It can also be chilled and warmed in the microwave before serving.
Cooking Note(s):
- Meal prep & duration of storage in fridge: (A) bacon wrapped pea shoots – keeps well overnight, (B) garden pasta & (C) ham tamagoyaki – keeps well for 2 days and (D) gyoza – keeps well for 3 days.
- For the step-by-step photo on how to fold the egg roll in step 3, you can refer to my pea shoots tamagoyaki recipe.